


Pictures of the Past

by alafaye



Series: Travels [6]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-26
Updated: 2013-08-26
Packaged: 2017-12-24 17:58:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/942944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alafaye/pseuds/alafaye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anwen just wants to know why the pictures make Mum sad. (set post Miracle Day)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pictures of the Past

**Author's Note:**

> Fills the "aunts and uncles" square for my [love bingo](http://alafaye.livejournal.com/337489.html).

Anwen grunted as she reached for the album on the top shelf. She was _almost_ big enough to reach and Uncle Jack said _almost_ was sometimes good enough. So she should be able to get the album, no matter how much her mum might tell her no. (Da said she was old enough, but Mum disagreed.) Her middle finger brushed the spine of the album--success!--so she curled her other fingers around the bottom edge of the book and used her other hand to hold it up as she tilted it back.

Ha! She beamed triumphantly as she finally held the album in her hand. She didn't know what kind of pictures were in here exactly, but she had caught Mum crying when she looked through it so it must be important. 

Anwen just had to know what about these pictures made her mum so sad. So she could maybe make her mum feel better. (And if she was just a little curious, well, so what? Uncle Jack said she got that from her mum and it was only natural.)

She set the album on the coffee table and gently opened it. There were pictures in here, with newspaper clippings and notes. She flipped the pages, studying all the pictures and reading what she could. There were not a lot of different people in here--some of Uncle Andy, some of Uncle Jack. Sometimes Uncle Ianto was in the picture. There were two others who appeared a lot--one of a pretty Japanese woman and a man with a narrow face. Other people were here, but only once. Like they came and went just for the day. The newspaper stories were about aliens and rescues and danger. Her mum's notes were funny stories or sad thoughts.

"Anwen!" Mum yelled.

Anwen, eyes wide, turned and faced her mum. "Yes?"

Mum's face was very angry and she looked like she was going to cry. "I told you to leave that alone!" She stormed across the room and picked up the album, holding it close to her. "Why would you look through this?" She frowned. "How did you get this off the shelf?" She knelt down and cupped Anwen's cheek. "You didn't hurt yourself, did you?"

Anwen rolled her eyes, wondering if her mum had taken a single breath that whole time. "I'm fine, Mum. I was just curious because the pictures always make you sad and I wanted to know why and why I couldn't see these."

Mum swallowed hard. "Anwen...I'm sorry, sweetheart." She looked at the album, still pressed close to her. "I suppose if you're old enough to get this off the shelf, you're old enough to know. Come on."

Mum lifted her up and together they sat on the couch. Mum opened the book to the first page and took a deep breath. "I used to work for this company--it's gone now, in a bad...fire. But these people--I lost them there."

"In the fire?" Anwen asked.

Mum shook her head. "No. That was before--in an accident." Mum sniffed and pointed to a group picture--Uncle Andy, Uncle Jack, Uncle Ianto, and the two others. "You know your Uncle Jack, Uncle Ianto, and Uncle Andy. But this is Toshiko and Owen. We worked together, fighting aliens."

"Like Uncle Ianto's friend?" Anwen asked.

Mum nodded. "Exactly. But the aliens we fought were bad--they wanted to hurt people. Now, this picture was taken when Uncle Jack tried to flirt with a bartender..."


End file.
